elongate
verb · adjective
Simple meaning
To make long or longer, for example, by pulling or stretching.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
ihlawnggaytSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ɪˈlɔŋɡeɪt
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
verb
transitive
To make (something) long or longer, for example, by pulling or stretching; to make (something) elongated; to extend, to lengthen.
intransitive
To become long or longer, for example, by being pulled or stretched; to become elongated.
adjective
Elongated, extended, lengthened; (especially biology) having a long and slender form.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Frequency
- Rare
- Typical Use
- Varies by meaning
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: To make (something) long or longer, for example, by pulling or stretching; to make (something) elongated; to extend, to lengthen.
Used this way, elongate is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
The quality of being elongated.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.